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Synonyms

tantalizing

American  
[tan-tl-ahy-zing] / ˈtæn tlˌaɪ zɪŋ /

adjective

  1. having or exhibiting something that provokes or arouses expectation, interest, or desire, especially that which remains unobtainable or beyond one's reach.

    a tantalizing taste of success.

Other Word Forms

  • tantalizingly adverb
  • untantalizing adjective

Etymology

Origin of tantalizing

First recorded in 1650–60; tantalize + -ing 2

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

But then, he flashed the tantalizing potential that the Dodgers saw when they signed him before last season.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 3, 2026

And yet the prospect of using origami to improve existing technologies is, for some, tantalizing.

From BBC • Mar. 3, 2026

This elusive, tantalizing novel aims for the effect of the raga—to conjure “the sadness, the richness, the pleasure of the waiting and the wandering.”

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 20, 2026

They’re inspiring and tantalizing, each salad photo a beautiful showcase of visual media at its finest.

From Salon • Feb. 7, 2026

The one thing that kept her polite and attentive to Mrs. Coulter was that tantalizing hope of going north.

From "The Golden Compass" by Philip Pullman

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.